Jürgen Klopp has spoken up for Virgil van Dijk after his former Liverpool captain got into a heated exchange with the Dutch press. The two will be on opposite sides this week, with Klopp preparing to take charge of Germany for the first time as they travel to face the Netherlands in the UEFA Nations League.
The row stemmed from lingering fallout over the Netherlands' World Cup exit to Morocco in the Round of 16. At a tense press conference, Van Dijk was pressed on suggestions that he had pushed for the tactical switch to a back five that preceded the elimination, and he wasn't having it.
"One of your colleagues also said, of course, that it was my idea to switch to playing with a back five. That is utter nonsense. The fact is, we simply failed at the World Cup; those are the hard facts," he told one reporter, via The Mirror.
"We didn't play a good World Cup. It's not about me. You perform together; you're a team. Your claim that I destroyed Dutch football after the World Cup - that sort of thing is completely baseless."
Klopp weighs in
Word of the confrontation reached Klopp, who feels his old defender has become an easy target. "I think you yourselves know that you are quite critical. Virgil should tell you that," he said. "Our German journalists are pretty good too [at being critical], but you might not even be that much worse. I haven't really followed the Dutch press, but I assume you weren't happy with the elimination."
He added: "Then the captain gets more criticism too. Virgil has had a lot of great moments in his career and also a few lesser ones. Because he is not only physically present, but normally also because of his performances, I can imagine that he gets singled out a bit."
A century of caps in sight
Van Dijk, 35, could reach his 100th international appearance during this break if he plays in all four of the Netherlands' Nations League fixtures against Germany, Greece and Serbia, the latter twice. He admitted the World Cup disappointment left him questioning his international future, but a brief conversation with new head coach Xavi settled the matter quickly.
"I needed a holiday with my family and then an important meeting with the national coach: After 10 seconds it was already clear that I would continue," Van Dijk said. "What he said? That I am Virgil van Dijk. It is about trust, appreciation, how important you are for the team. Physically, there is - and was - no doubt but you also want to feel appreciation and pleasure."
The Netherlands host Germany in Amsterdam on Friday in a Group A2 clash that also includes Serbia and Greece, with the top two sides in the group advancing to the quarter-finals in the spring.
